Port Wentworth adopts FY27 budget with no tax increase, funds equipment for 165-acre Anchor Park

The Port Wentworth City Council unanimously adopted the fiscal year 2027 budget on June 25, maintaining the current millage rate and imposing no tax increase, City Manager Steve Davis said at the public hearing and vote.

Davis told the council the proposed budget fully funds city operations, includes funding for 77 projects, provides a cost-of-living adjustment for employees and maintains employee medical insurance and other existing benefits. "The budget maintains the current millage rate with no tax increase," he said.

Councilwoman ArtLise Alston-Cone pressed for more specificity about several capital expenditures, asking why HVAC units in the current building were not replaced during the recent renovation and whether additional needs were identified after the project was completed. She also asked whether the budgeted amount for a basketball court included a canopy structure. "I am concerned about the level of detail provided for certain capital spending in the proposed budget," Cone said and requested that similar specificity be provided for all significant purchases.

Davis replied the new police station, which will include a courtroom, is still about two to three years from completion and that the existing courthouse HVAC system has failed and must be replaced to maintain operations until the new facility opens. He clarified that City Hall contains multiple HVAC units and the plan is not to replace them all at once. On the parks question, Davis said the budgeted funding for the basketball court covers only surface improvements and will be completed in the same manner as prior work at Della Steel Park.

The budget also includes funding to equip the city’s newly established Parks Department to maintain the new 165-acre Anchor Park, which is expected to open during the current budget cycle. Davis listed required purchases including mowers, blowers, weed eaters, chainsaws, specialized field maintenance equipment and equipment for athletic fields and infields, noting the Parks Department previously relied on Public Works equipment.

On tourism revenue accounting, Davis said Hotel/Motel Tax receipts are collected into a separate fund and transferred monthly into the General Fund; "once the funds are transferred into the General Fund, they are not separately tracked or segregated because they are considered unrestricted funds," he said, adding they may be used for any eligible General Fund purpose.

Council Member Mark Stephens moved to approve the FY27 budget; Mayor Pro Tem Gabrielle Nelson seconded. The motion passed unanimously. Recorded ayes were Mayor Pro Tem Gabrielle Nelson, Council Members ArtLise Alston-Cone, Mark Stephens, Rufus Bright and Shawn Randerwala.

Following the vote, the council adjourned to executive session to discuss litigation, personnel and real estate and later reconvened. The council’s formal attestation of the minutes was prepared by Clerk Zahnay Smoak.